quote:

Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles Doesn't simple heat make a lot of people "more tired and more irritable?" I wouldn't be surprised if heat itself had a direct effect on people's ability to concentrate on mental tasks, as I have a much easier time thinking something out when I'm cool than when I'm uncomfortably hot. Heat makes me feel drowsy and slow-witted, and I suspect that many other people are the same way. The traditional explanation for greater intelligence evolving in cold climates was that people in cold climates had to plan more carefully and construct more robust kinds of shelters because of the long, harsh winters.

Yeah, thats what i thought. In addition, in contradicts the fact that civilization started in warmer climates in the first place e.g. Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece and Rome. The author aknowledges that but it seems that he doesn't give a reason why, he just says "civilization may have started in warmer environments but that was then". This is not science this is supidity.




Second, those correlational studies just look at relations in the first place, not causations and there could be many hidden variables regarding that specific relation. Despite that, the author states that here we "probably have causation" because the weather comes first in relation to the thee dependent variables. Whilst this is true there is no way that one could imply a ("probable") "causation" from a correlation.



Third, the data are ONLY taken from the USA. This is far from scientific, since there could be hidden "societal" and other factors which could lead to the current correlation rather than the weather per se. In a matter of fact, the author aknowledges that, saying that the differences could reflect a "brain drain" in which "smarter" immigrants could have settled to the northern states whereas "dumber" ones to southern ones, but then he proposes a counter-argument which goes like this:


"Even in this case, where climate does not cause group differences in IQ, it still confirms the hypothesis that colder climates favor civilization -- why else would smarties flock there?"



Right, so colder climates causes higher IQ, and why do we have higher IQ(?) and increased civilization? Because people with high IQ go to colder climates. Sorry man, but this seems like circular logic to me.




In a matter of fact, there would be no need for "brain drain" hypothesis and stuff, this whole thing could be the result of simple happenstance and societal factors which could have occured at the time of migration from Europe. I'm no expert at American history, but i have the impression that overall more criminals/gold-seekers/miners/adventurers (people who could possibly have a lower IQ on those specific aspects that IQ tests test) tended to go to the American south, due to its rich resources in Gold and Petroleum, which as far as i know, were found in higher proportions in comparison to the American north. As a result, current lower IQ-means could reflect the genetic traits of those early "wilder" southern immigrants.




I'm not stating this as an alternative explanation, but more of as an example of how many alternative/hidden variables/explanations could contribute to the proposed statistical relationship. But you JBJ must know bettern than me (because you are from the states and as far as i can see from Texas...oops sorry ).




And lol at this thread for ending to another typical "Global Warming" discussion which has nothing to do with the curent thread-subject.


It seems that the words "global warming" alone were enough to cause the "flames"

Last edited by PETRAN on Jul-17-2008 at 17:32

Yup, human's are part of the nature, even though we aren't really healthy to it. I just didn't want to bring it up on the last post, since there are enough of wackos running around internet telling how we are cancer on earth and should be demolished by any means possible.

Most people image of nature nowadays is pretty twiested, or almoust nonexistant (Just on side note, Im have always been big nature enthusiast and always will be...) and that is basicly the core of the problem. Nature is more like resource than the system we are living on nowadays. Ok I could keep on the preaching, but most have anyways heard these things many times over and over and it wouldn't really take the discuission anywhere.

Im not saying that we should let the things roll like they are, and just give up, but I'm trying to say, that the ball is really on higher authorities. The problem has been acknowledged for long time, and yet politicans just talk about it, and then make some contracts that will allow the polluting go on, but only difference is that the companies will have to use money to pollute. Hell, I'm all in if there would be decision to cut out most of the things that we keep as part of modern society (For example exotic fruits, personal cars for most people, most flights etc.) if everyone would agree to. But seeing nothing really happening and life going on as it is, (hell, bank's giving 60 year loans for houses, like stuff wouldn't change by alot in that time, oil price going so high that there wouldn't be point using it for example.) I see no real point of limiting my life to "save" enviroment. If there is million fly's eating on pile of corpses, does it make difference if one fly flies away? It's not like the piece that was left uneaten by the one fly will be left as it is.
Now, if majority, or at least big amount of them would suddenly fly away, rest might realize there is something fucked up in there, and would follow them. In order to get this kind of reactions, we would really need to have goverments stepping to it.

So yeah, I will keep feasting on the corpse untill I feel that it does make difference to stop, or when I can know that my spot will not be claimed by other fly.

I hope you understand the point. (Actually I used to think that people in the mindset I am on are disguisting too, but trying to do something about it, while nothing really seems to be done about it really eats away the will to do something about it.)

quote:

Originally posted by Ang ' ela_ie Interesting? Bullshit?

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NEW MIX [Feb/March 2008]

quote:

Originally posted by nrjizer

Actually there is quite lot of pirates nowadays on asia/middle east region, so your graph is flawed